UNSYG ANNAN IN ISRAEL: POSITIVE ATMOSPHERE BUT NO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 003485

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/31/2016
TAGS: PREL UN LE IS
SUBJECT: UNSYG ANNAN IN ISRAEL: POSITIVE ATMOSPHERE BUT NO
AGREEMENT ON BLOCKADE

REF: A) BEIRUT 2805 B) BEIRUT 2797 C) TEL AVIV 3369

Classified By: Ambassador Richard H. Jones; reasons 1.4 (B and D).


1. (C) Summary: United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan
met with Israeli PM Ehud Olmert, FM Tzipi Livni, DefMin Amir
Peretz, Vice PM Shimon Peres, and the families of missing IDF
soldiers during a visit to Jerusalem on August 29-30. Both
sides characterized the talks as positive and productive,
although they continued to disagree on when the GOI will lift
its blockade of Lebanon. UN officials were pleased by
detailed discussions of UNIFIL's rules of engagement (ROE),
while the Israelis were less confident that these talks had
resulted in any real progress. In both public and private,
Annan stressed his desire to overcome what he called
"stagnation" in the peace process. End summary.

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UN Presses on Lifting Blockade and IDF Withdrawal
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2. (C) After meeting with Olmert, Annan told the press that
"I have been urging the immediate lifting of the blockade on
Lebanon." A member of UN Special Envoy to the Middle East
Alvaro de Soto's staff confirmed that Annan had raised the
issue at each of his meetings, often focusing on the
resumption of normal traffic at Beirut International Airport.
Israeli officials said that the GOI had urged the UN to
ensure a role for UNIFIL in enforcing the weapons embargo,
especially along the Syrian-Lebanese border. In response,
Annan had promised Olmert that he would raise the border
issue during his discussions in Damascus and would ask
Siniora to request assistance from a naval task force.
Livni's staff said that she was dissatisfied with the UN's
insistence that PM Siniora formally request assistance,
something she did not believe he would ever do. Nonetheless,
MFA DG Aharon Abramovitch told the Ambassador that the GOI
had been assured by the Secretary General that German border
assistance to Lebanon would be provided under the UNIFIL
rubric. Livni's staff noted that the MOD is currently
working on an exact definition of what would constitute an
"effective embargo" and trigger an end to the unilateral
Israeli blockade.


3. (C) In public remarks, Annan implied that the Israeli
forces should withdraw from Lebanon once UNIFIL has deployed
its first 5,000 troops. A UN official told poloff that this
level could be reached as early as September 1. Neither the
PMO nor the UN had further details on the withdrawal
discussions. They noted that almost two-thirds of the
Annan-Olmert and one-half of the Annan-Livni meetings were
conducted one-on-one. PMO, MFA, and UN staff members told
post that they had only partial read-outs of those portions
of the talks.

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UN Hears Israelis Concerns Over UNIFIL's ROE
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4. (C) Livni and Annan briefly discussed UNIFIL's rules of
engagement (ROE) and concept of operations (CONOPS). UN
staff and GOI representatives from the MFA, MOD, and NSC led
by Abramovitch continued these talks later on August 30. UN
participants told poloff that they had tried to convince
their GOI counterparts that too much detail would tie the
UNIFIL commander's hands. They were extremely positive about
the outcome of the talks, while MFA participants expressed
frustration that the session, in their view, had accomplished
little except to allow the UN to claim it had discussed
Israeli concerns.


5. (C) A UN official said that Olmert had also asked Annan to
ensure that Hizballah is disarmed. Annan replied that this
step will need to be part of a larger political process; any
move along these lines by Siniora would result in a "civil
war," he maintained, while any attempt to have UNIFIL do so
would lead troop contributors to withdraw their forces.

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Annan Urges Renewal of Peace Process
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6. (C) According to both the UN staff and the Israelis, Annan
stressed repeatedly that the international community wants an
end to what he called the "stagnation" of the peace process.
MFA officials said Livni objected that the Roadmap already
provides an accepted framework for progress. In her view,
the PA's inability to meet its international obligations
should not elicit new initiatives. Annan suggested that new
ideas under discussion in New York might result in progress
and urged the GOI to make its own arrangements with the PA if
it believes bilateral talks would be more successful. The UN
staff said that Annan had reassured Olmert and Livni that
Israel and other UN members will have sufficient input to any
new ideas that might be introduced at the UNGA.
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